Universal Constants
Represented by the letter c, this fundamental constant is exactly 299,792,458 meters per second.
What is the speed of light?
When a planet passes in front of its star, causing a temporary dip in brightness, astronomers call it this type of event.
What is an exoplanet transit?
This supernova was the first to be studied in-depth by modern astronomers, with associated photon & neutrino observations.
What is SN 1987A?
In this 2014 film, a black hole named Gargantua was so scientifically accurate it led to a published physics paper.
What is Interstellar?
This NASA mission, named after the Australopithecus afarensis fossil Dinkʼinesh, discovered by Donald Johanson and his team, is on its way to study the Trojan asteroids.
What is Lucy?
At about 3.086×10^{16}m, this distance unit is commonly used to measure distances between stars.
What is a lightyear?
A predecessor to TESS, this space telescope operated from 2009 to 2018.
What is Kepler?
Derived from the Latin word for "new," this term describes a less catastrophic stellar eruption, where a white dwarf temporarily brightens due to a nuclear reaction on its surface without destroying the star.
What is "nova"?
This song by David Bowie tells the story of Major Tom, a fictional astronaut lost in space.
What is Space Oddity?
This NASA rover, which landed on Mars in 2021, is designed to search for signs of ancient life and collect samples for future missions.
What is Perseverance?
This standard unit, equivalent to 1.989×10^{30}kg, hits close to home and allows astronomers to compare the masses of celestial objects.
What is a solar mass?
By analyzing the light from a star during a planet's transit, scientists can use this technique to infer the planet's atmospheric composition.
What is spectroscopy?
After a supernova explosion, the remaining core of the star can form this dense object, which may be a neutron star or black hole.
What is a remnant?
This animated sci-fi sitcom features a planet-sized bureaucracy called the "Central Bureaucracy" and a delivery company called "Planet Express."
What is Futurama?
This NASA space telescope, launched in 1990, has revolutionized our understanding of the universe with stunning images of distant galaxies and nebulae.
What is the Hubble Space Telescope (HST)?
Commonly denoted z, this unitless measure tells astronomers how much the wavelength of light has been stretched as the universe expands.
What is redshift?
This term refers to exoplanets that are similar in size to our own and orbit within their respective stars' "habitable zones," where liquid water could exist.
Supernovae are important for this process, where elements like gold and uranium are created and spread throughout the universe.
What is nucleosynthesis?
Originally airing in 1980 and rebooted in 2014, this influential science documentary series explored the wonders of the universe and was hosted by Carl Sagan and later Neil deGrasse Tyson.
What is Cosmos?
This NASA mission, which launched in 2018, is the first to study the solar corona and the closest to it.
What is the Parker Solar Probe?
This unit used to measure the explosive energy of a supernova, equivalent to 10^51erg, is an acronym that describes itself.
What is a foe?
These gas giant exoplanets orbit very close to their stars, making them extremely hot and easier to detect.
What are hot Jupiters?
Supernovae of this type are considered "standard candles" due to their consistent peak luminosities and are thus often used to measure astronomical distances.
What is a Type 1a SN?
This 1995 film tells the story of a failed NASA mission with the famous line, "Houston, we have a problem."
What is Apollo 13?
This spacecraft, launched in 2015, traveled to Pluto and its moons, providing the first close-up images of the dwarf planet.
What is New Horizons?